[ale] [OT] Software and file formats for on-line/correspondence chemical education

[Tom Freeman]

On Fri, 20 Jan 2012, Wolf Halton wrote:

>
>  On Fri, Jan 20, 2012 at 10:20 AM, Tom Freeman
> <tfreeman at intel.digichem.net> wrote:
>       I have accepted the job of teaching an on-line
>       chemistry course for majors
>       next fall, with the requirement that the course be
>       written this spring.
>       I for see an issue which I could use a whole heaping
<<snip/chop>>
> 
> What kind of thing are they doing?
> OpenOfficeDraw can let them make sketches
> Dia can let them make more organized diagrams (replaces visio)
> What MafiaSoft product are you attempting to substitute?

Wolf

Basically, as I understand their suggestions (at this instant),
the suggestion is to use Office 2010 exclusively. Apparently,
the ability to take a document and use a  stylus and touchpad
for annotation exists in the package. I cant't swear to that, as
I don't use it.

As for what the students will be doing - this is freshman
chemistry. There will be a limited number of cases where graphic
structures (orbital orientation, crystal structure, 3-D molecules,
fisher structures for example) are useful in this course. More
important to me is the ability to structure a calculation
argument for  tasks such as conversions, stoichimetric calculations, 
dilutions, and the like. Of course, there is also the relatively
simple task of getting a nicely laid out reaction equation.

I should point out, that I'm getting old enough to still expect some
old school skills. "Google that" for a conversion doesn't cut it.
I want somebody to be able to recognize a conversion type problem,
and how to set it up, document the set up, and get an informative
result. One demo which I can only wish will survive transmission.

Convert 75.2 inches to kilometers. (Work with me here please.
I know it is an absurd problem, but we all know absurdity is all
through the work place and life.)

I try to enforce writing down the conversion facts you plan to use.
Hence: 2.54 cm = 1 in (exact), 100 cm = 1 m (exact),
1000m = 1Km (exact).

There are _at_least_ three structurally different formating
aproaches, and may be a few others. Algebraically creating a ratio
then computing, computing three different conversions in sequence,
something called units analysis which is set up and compute.
Working with people who are having difficulties just wrapping their
minds around conversions, let alone formating them for posterity...

To continue with a sequence of conversions:
                    _75.2 in_ = _?_ cm_
convert in -> cm      1 in       2.54 cm  ===> 191.008 cm

                    _191.008_cm   = _?_m_
convert cm -> m      100 cm         1 m   ===> 1.91008 m

                    _1.91008_m_  = _?_Km_
convert m -> Km      1000 m        1 Km   ===> 0.00191008 Km

sig fig ===> 0.00191 Km


(sorry about having to use ASCI art style formatting, those
entries are fast attempts to show ratios)

Hopefully this shows a little bit of what I'm trying to
accomplish. I'm trying to get students to create documentable
solutions for their future work, not to rely on "Google". Their
employers are not hiring "Google".

FWIW - I'm using "Google" in the sense of "look it up via computer
on-line" rather than the corporate entity we all know and many
love.

Hope this makes sense, and I apologise for the rather OT use
of innocent bandwidth.